Qadry Callaway gave his team something to celebrate early against Bayonne, scoring the 1,000th point of his career on a free throw in the second quarter. The senior then made free throws in the final minute to help his squad breathe a sigh of relief.

The senior scored 10 of his 28 points in the fourth quarter and made a pair of free throws with 25 seconds left to help Bayonne hold off Union and assure a 70-63 victory in the first round of the North Jersey, Section 2, Group 4 tournament in Union.

"I'm real proud of that kid, he worked hard for it," Bayonne coach Mickell Taylor said of Callaway. "That kid has been playing varsity for three years now, and that's impressive to get 1,000 points in three years, especially when I've had other scorers. I'm extremely proud of him and the way he played. He stepped up, he closed the game when he was supposed to, he did an excellent job."

Bayonne will face Linden, No. 4 in The Star-Ledger Top 20, in the next round. Cody Balderamos had 16 points in the victory and Xavier Matos had 10 points. Emanuel Kema and Jordan Roberson both scored 19 to lead Union.

Callaway got off to a fast start with 10 points in the first quarter and Bayonne held Union without a field goal for the first seven minutes and 40 seconds of the game. This combination created a 17-6 lead after the first quarter. The first points of the second quarter came from Callaway at the free throw line as he reached the 1,000 point mark, and the game stopped momentarily for his squad to celebrate and take pictures.

"It feels great," Callaway said. "I can't explain it in words."

Union responded with its first signs of life, a 9-0 run that cut the deficit to four points. But Bayonne countered with a 16-4 run to build the lead back up.

The home squad bounced back in the third quarter, with Kema catching fire from beyond the arc and scoring 12 of his 19 points in the session. But even outscoring Bayonne by two in the quarter, Bayonne seemed to be in control and it stayed that way until the final minutes of the game.

Diego Rios had 13 points and Roberson had nine in the fourth quarter and the two fueled a Union charge that saw the lead cut to five points in the final minute.

"You just got to play to the buzzer," Taylor said. "Guys are up 16, 18 and as much as 20, they think the game is over. It's 32 minutes. You've got to play to that final buzzer. They cut it to five points. We've just got to close out games."

Callaway missed two free throws in the final minute to keep the door open for Union, but redeemed himself 25 seconds later by sinking two free throws to put the game out of reach.

"The first time, I think I rushed my foul shots," Callaway said. "The second time, I just tried to be poised and calm, and just concentrate."